Not to be a conspiracy theorist, but the IKEA one which they singled out as not recommended to buy is the only one in the article they don't earn a commission on when someone buys it
Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
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Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#32For anything else, Consumer Reports. They don't accept advertising or commissions.
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#33Take a European brand. Add some mysterious spec numbers to the name, and turn a milquetoast product into something cool or respectable.
My favorite: the "Merkur XR4Ti" which was basically a Ford Sierra hatchback (family car) with a vaguely sporty look and slightly higher performance engine.
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#34Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#35Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#36Protip: you can turn a box fan into an incredibly effective air purifier[0] (particle measurements in thread). The one they show is pretty elaborate, using 4 filters and some construction, but you can also use a single filter and slap it on the back of the box fan and have similar results. The air purifier industry is more about aesthetics than it is function. 0. https://twitter.com/LazarusLong13/status/1425517352624…
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#37On the first point in the article, there is a definition for HEPA which for ISO is 99.95% efficiency. The Ikea purifier doesn't meet this. It meets the EPA standard, hence the designation of E12 (99.5%).
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#38I am legit wondering if air purifiers wouldn't be a good addition in preschools. A classroom isn't that big and one of these things would probably be enough. A school year would require 2-3 replacements, ie. not much. Anybody did something like this?
This was just the first link that came up, but there was state-level funding going back to 2021 at least for this in some places.
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/how-covid-funding-could-...
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#39It is sold either as a standalone device or integrated into a nightstand / small coffee table: https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/starkvind-table-with-air-purifi...
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#40Glad to see some strong analysis backing up my decision to ignore wirecutter reviews for a couple of years now. Basically when they started publishing reviews for things they did not actually review.